Methodology of Economics and Other Social Sciences (eBook)

Front Cover 1
Methodology of Economics and Other Social Sciences 4
Copyright Page 5
Table of Contents 6
PREFACE 10
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 14
Part One: ON THE NATURE AND SIGNIFICANCE OF METHODOLOGY 16
INTRODUCTION TO PART ONE 18
Chapter 1. WHAT IS MEANT BY METHODOLOGY: A SELECTIVE SURVEY OF THE LITERATURE 20
THE DEBASING OF THE TERM 21
WHAT METHODOLOGISTS ACTUALLY WROTE 25
METHODOLOGY, LOGIC, EPISTEMOLOGY, PHILOSOPHY 68
Chapter 2. WHY BOTHER WITH METHODOLOGY? 78
Part Two: ON FACTS, MODELS, AND THEORIES IN ECONOMICS 86
INTRODUCTION TO PART TWO 88
Chapter 3. A NOTE ON MODELS IN MICROECONOMICS 90
OLIGOPOLISTIC INDETERMINACY 100
Chapter 4. FACT AND THEORY IN ECONOMICS 116
EXPLANATION, PREDICTION, EVALUATION 131
MEASUREMENT 141
Part Three: ON VERIFICATION AND OPERATIONALISM 146
INTRODUCTION TO PART THREE 148
Chapter 5. THE PROBLEM OF VERIFICATION IN ECONOMICS 152
I 152
II 156
III 163
IV 168
Chapter 6. OPERATIONAL CONCEPTS AND MENTAL CONSTRUCTS IN MODEL AND THEORY FORMATION 174
I. THE CONCEPTS OF PHYSICS 175
II. EMPIRICAL LAWS AND PURE THEORY 185
III. CONSTRUCT AND MODEL 190
Chapter 7. OPERATIONALISM AND PURE THEORY IN ECONOMICS 204
THE TENETS OF OPERATIONALISM 206
PURE CONSTRUCTS AND OPERATIONAL CONCEPTS 208
EMPIRICAL THEORIES AND PURE THEORY 211
ILLUSTRATION: A THEORETICAL ARGUMENT AND THE CONCEPTS USED 212
THE NEED FOR OPERATIONAL CONCEPTS 216
OPERATIONAL THEORIES, SO-CALLED 217
Part Four: ON IDEAL TYPES AND THE INTERPRETATION OF REALITY 220
INTRODUCTION TO PART FOUR 222
Chapter 8. THE IDEAL TYPE: A BAD NAME FOR A GOOD CONSTRUCT 226
PSYCHOLOGY AND LOGIC OF CONCEPT FORMATION 226
CONSTRUCTS BASED ON SUBJECTIVE MEANINGS 227
TWO SETS OF DISTINCTIONS 229
PERSONAL IDEAL TYPES 230
MATERIAL IDEAL TYPES 233
IDEAL TYPES OF FEELINGS 233
WHAT'S IN A NAME? 235
Chapter 9. IDEAL TYPES, REALITY, AND CONSTRUCTION 238
A MENTAL CONSTRUCTION: VON THÜNEN 239
DESCRIPTIVE AND NORMATIVE TYPES: PLATO, ARISTOTLE, MODERN SCIENCE 241
EXACT IMAGINATION, SELECTIVE EXAGGERATION, LOGICAL ISOLATION: GOETHE, COMTE, MILL, COURNOT 242
REAL TYPES AND STRICT TYPES: CARL MENGER 245
ISOLATING ABSTRACTION AND MEANT MEANINGS: WUNDT, DILTHEY 247
GENERALIZING, INDIVIDUALIZING, UNDERSTANDING: WINDELBAND, RICKERT, SIMMEL 249
IDEAL TYPES CONSTRUCTED WITH UNDERSTANDING OF MEANT MEANINGS: WEBER 251
INCONSISTENT ASSIGNMENTS FOR THE IDEAL TYPE: OPPENHEIMER, SCHELTING, MISES, SOMBART 254
THE DISCUSSION CONTINUED: WEIPPERT, SPRANGER, SPIETHOFF 256
PERSONAL AND MATERIAL IDEAL TYPES OF VARYING DEGREES OF ANONYMITY: SCHUTZ 259
CONTRASTING REAL AND IDEAL TYPES OF VARYING DEGREES OF REALISM: EUCKEN 262
THE REAL TYPE: MENGER ONCE AGAIN 270
THREE TYPICAL EXAMPLES OF REAL TYPES IN ECONOMICS 271
THE RELATION BETWEEN REAL TYPES AND IDEAL TYPES 273
THE REAL IN THE REAL TYPE AND THE IDEAL IN THE IDEAL TYPE 274
OPERATIONAL CONCEPTS AND PURE CONSTRUCTS 275
THE POSITIVISTIC PREJUDICE AGAINST CONSTRUCTION 277
POSTCRIPT 279
ANOTHER POSTCRIPT AFTER EIGHTEEN YEARS 279
Chapter 10. HOMO OECONOMICUS AND HIS CLASS MATES 282
PREFATORY NOTE 282
THE DISSECTION OF HOMO TOTUS 283
THIS ONE VERSUS ANY ONE 283
FOUR CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES 284
THE IDEAL TYPE OF THE "IDEAL TYPE" 288
PRE-SCIENTIFIC COMMON-SENSE AND SCIENTIFIC THINKING 291
SELECTING THE RELEVANT TYPE 292
THE ROLE OF HOMO OECONOMICUS 295
Chapter 11. THE UNIVERSAL BOGEY: ECONOMIC MAN 298
A SAMPLE OF DENUNCIATIONS 299
THE GROUNDS OF THE OPPOSITION 301
THE HYPOTHETICAL NATURE OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOURSE 302
POSITIVE TRUTH AND MERE SUPPOSITION 304
USEFUL FICTIONS 305
PREMISES AND CONCLUSIONS 305
EGOISM, TUISM, AND SIMPLIFIED PSYCHOLOGY 307
THE OBJECTIVES OF ECONOMIC MAN 310
THE LOGICAL NATURE OF ECONOMIC MAN 312
THE FUNCTION OF ECONOMIC MAN 313
Part Five: ON COMPARISONS BETWEEN NATURAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES 318
INTRODUCTION TO PART FIVE 320
Chapter 12. IF MATTER COULD TALK 324
A PARABLE 324
FRITZ MACHLUP 325
IF MATTER COULD TALK 326
A SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF THE THEME 326
IF MATTER COULD TALK 328
THE ISSUE CLEARLY POSED 329
NO DIFFERENCE IN LOGIC 330
THE NATURE OF THE DIFFERENCE 331
TALES TOLD BY MOLECULES 334
TALES TOLD BY MEN 335
SILENT NATURE VERSUS TALKING MAN: ONLY ONE OF THE DIFFERENCES 337
OBSERVATION AND EXPLANATION IN ECONOMICS 339
UNIVERSAL AND PARTICULAR, THEORY AND HISTORY 341
NAGEL ON PROPOSITIONS OF SOCIAL SCIENCES 344
HUNCHES 346
Chapter 13. THE INFERIORITY COMPLEX OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCES 348
Chapter 14. ARE THE SOCIAL SCIENCES REALLY INFERIOR? 360
Part Six: SOME ASPECTS AND APPLICATIONS OF ECONOMIC METHODOLOGY 384
INTRODUCTION TO PART SIX 386
Chapter 15. WHY ECONOMISTS DISAGREE 390
DISAGREEMENT ON INTERNATIONAL MONETARY PRESCRIPTIONS 391
THE CHOICE OF POLICIES 391
FOUR CAUSES OF DISAGREEMENT 393
COMPARISONS WITH NATURAL SCIENTISTS 401
Chapter 16. THEORIES OF THE FIRM: MARGINALIST, BEHAVIORAL, MANAGERIAL 406
REFERENCES 436
Chapter 17. POSITIVE AND NORMATIVE ECONOMICS 440
THE MEANINGS OF "POSITIVE" 441
THE MEANINGS OF "NORMATIVE 443
"POSITIVE" VERSUS "NORMATIVE" 443
THE TRICHOTOMY AND THE CHOICE OF TERMS 444
GRAMMATICAL FORMS 445
THE LANGUAGE OF THE COOKBOOK 446
ART AND SCIENCE 447
NORMS, VALUES, RULES, PRECEPTS, ADVICE, PERSUASION, AND COMMAND 449
THE LOGICAL STATUS OF NORMATIVE STATEMENTS 450
"POSITIVE" VERSUS "NONOBSERVABLE" 452
"POSITIVE" VERSUS "NONTESTABLE" 453
THE ECONOMIST'S CONCERN WITH VALUES 454
THE ECONOMIST'S SCIENTIFIC OBJECTIVITY 456
ADJUDICATING CHARGES OF BIAS 459
THE NORMATIVE CHARACTER OF WELFARE ECONOMICS 460
Part Seven: ON VARIOUS METHODOLOGICAL POSITIONS 466
INTRODUCTION TO PART SEVEN 468
Chapter 18. JOSEPH SCHUMPETERS ECONOMIC METHODOLOGY 476
METHODOLOGICAL TOLERANCE 478
ECONOMIC SCIENCE 479
FUNCTIONAL VERSUS CAUSAL RELATIONSHIPS 481
ASSUMPTIONS, MODELS, FACTS, AND VERIFICATIONS 482
QUANTITATIVE AND NUMERICAL ECONOMICS 483
ECONOMIC DYNAMICS 484
METHODOLOGICAL INDIVIDUALISM 486
PURE SCIENCE VERSUS PRACTICAL AIMS 488
Chapter 19. GUNNAR MYRDAL ON CONCEALED VALUE JUDGMENTS 490
Chapter 20. PAUL SAMUELSON ON THEORY AND REALISM 496
REFERENCES 499
Chapter 21. THREE WRITERS ON SOCIAL THEORY: MADGE, ROSE, AND ZETTERBERG 500
Chapter 22. JOHN NEVILLE KEYNES' SCOPE AND METHOD 504
Chapter 23. TERENCE HUTCHISON'S RELUCTANT ULTRA-EMPIRICISM 508
Chapter 24. ADOLF LOWE'S INSTRUMENTAL ANALYSIS 520
THE INSTRUMENTAL INFERENCES 521
THE NEED FOR POSITIVE AND NORMATIVE ANALYSES 523
THE CRITICAL BOUNDARY 524
Chapter 25. FRIEDRICH HAYEK ON SCIENTIFIC AND SCIENTISTIC ATTITUDES 528
HAYEK'S PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE 528
CRITIQUE OF SCIENTISM 529
EXPLANATION, PREDICTION, AND SPECIALIZATION 531
ACTION AND PERCEPTION 534
Chapter 26. SPIRO LATSIS ON SITUATIONAL DETERMINISM 536
REFERENCES 549
INDEX 550